


the other side

by sutera



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Online Friendship, Online Relationship, Online Romance, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-17
Updated: 2019-02-23
Packaged: 2019-08-24 21:08:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16647824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sutera/pseuds/sutera
Summary: Noct hadn't really cared for making online friends until he's paired up via app with someone called Scientia.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> alright so there's only a few minor differences in this fic than canon and. one obvious major difference ljksd. please enjoy!!

School’s finally out.

Noct tosses his bag to the side, collapsing on the couch with a groan before curling up to the armrest. Beside him, Prompto yawns and stretches, flopping down next to him and tapping at his phone immediately.

“King’s Knight?” Noct asks, and he isn’t even ashamed he’s already slurring. Luckily, he’s got this afternoon off. Rest and relaxation. _Finally_. Well, at least for the next few hours. He’s pretty sure, for the next week, his schedule’s full of training and the kingly training he’s gotta go through.

“In a bit?” Prompto says distractedly, swiping through his phone as if backtracking through a conversation, before texting. “Just gotta reply to a few people.”

“Yeah?” It’s not like Noct hasn’t noticed Prompto texting other people. He wonders how Prompto has the energy to even keep up with so many of them, though. It’s almost a chore for Noct to have to talk to people daily at school. Not that it’s _bad_ , it’s just… exhausting. “Catching up already with our classmates?” he mumbles, folding his legs to the side and leaning on the armrest. He rests his head on his arm, eyes already drooping close.

“Nah, online friends,” comes the absentminded reply, and Noct snorts softly. He doesn’t even move when Prompto speaks again, “hey, don’t knock it ‘til you’ve tried it!”

“Don’t wanna try it,” Noct murmurs, nosing into the crook of his arm. Sleep tugs at the edge of his mind. “Rather sleep.”

He hears Prompto snort and feels a light nudge to his shoulder. “Yeah, heard that one before. Get a nap in, then. You were dying through math, after all.”

Noct mumbles something in response but he doesn’t bother being coherent about it. Instead, he slips easily into a doze.

He wakes up to a hand shaking his shoulder. He lifts his head, blinking sleepily at Prompto. “Muh?”

Prompto’s looking at him, bemused. “You sure you wanna sleep the night away? Didn’t you say you had a busy schedule after this?”

“Nngh,” Noct replies, tucking his head away. Sleep waves at him at the corner of his mind, but what Prompto says has merit. “Guess not.”

“Yeah, so c’mon!” Prompto tugs at his arm and Noct gives a noise of protest. “Up you get! Let’s play some games then I’ll leave you alone. Least your free time won’t go by in a blink of an eye, right?”

Well, when he puts it like that… Noct sits up, stretching and giving a long yawn. Prompto waits patiently—at least, Noct thinks so before glancing over. He notes the tell-tale green of the messenger app Prompto’s on and leans over, squinting.  “That really that interesting?”

Prompto jumps a little and jerks his phone back. “Hey, don’t look!”

Noct snorts and leans back, grabbing a controller and booting up the system. “Talking about porn, huh?”

“No, just—” Prompto starts, flushing, before shaking his head. “Just photography stuff.”

“Photos of naked people, then.”

“No!” Prompto shoves at him and Noct smirks. “Let’s just get gaming then, shall we?”

“Agreed,” Noct says, and tosses him the controller.

* * *

Four hours and two breaks later finds them both sinking further into the couch cushions. This time, Prompto’s yawning. Noct feels wide awake, but he figures he’ll fall asleep again in a few anyway. It’s, what, almost ten now?

“I gotta get up early,” Noct mutters, putting away the controller.

“Yeah, thought so. That sucks.” Prompto’s already quickly typing something in his phone.

Noct eyes that for a moment. “… How does that work, anyway?”

Prompto glances up, a small smirk on his face. “What, interested?”

Noct shrugs. “I guess.”

“Well,” the blond starts, grinning a little as he shuffles over. “It kinda connects people from all over the land, but you remain anonymous and so does the person you’re talking to. Basically you can find a random chat partner based on similar interests or you can join a group and see how that goes.” Prompto gestures to a little notification bell on the top right-hand corner of the app. “All your messages come through here.” The bell shakes, as if on cue, and a red circle appears. “That means I’ve received a message, or a friend request…”

“And they’re not creepy at all?” Noct raises a brow at him.

“Nah.” Prompto pauses. “Well, okay, yeah, there’s a weird corner of it. Like, you know when there’s a weird corner of the internet. Sometimes its better to stay faaar away and never meet anyone in dark alleyways all alone and all. Basic rules. Blah blah.” Prompto looks distracted and Noct snorts.

“That good, huh? Must be someone nice you’re talking to, then.

“Heh, I met a few people through this. There’s someone I talk to all the time and, um, yeah,” Prompto finishes in a hurry, flushing again.

Noct rolls his eyes. “Well, okay. Guess you got your hands full, then.”

“Yeeaahh…” Prompto says, glancing at his phone with a nervous fidget in his hands, and Noct shoves him.

“Go home and talk to your secret girlfriend, then.”

“Not a girl…” Prompto mutters, pouting a little before gathering his things and standing. “Alright, guess I’ll see you later. You want the link to download the app?”

Noct shrugs. “Nah, I’m good.”

“Yeah, alright.” Prompto peers at him but slings the bag over his shoulder. “See you later, then!”

“’See ya,” Noct gives a wave as Prompto heads out of his apartment, shutting the door behind him. Noct pulls out his phone and stares at the screen. **23:01**. Alright, a little past ten, then. He unlocks it.

There’re a lot of notifications, some schedule reminders, a few links from Gladio, a message from his dad, a few emails regarding school… He flicks through them quickly, answering his dad then checking out Gladio’s links (which include a relatively unsurprising assortment of Cup Noodle ads, food bowls, and workout stretches), before finally getting up and shuffling over to his bed.

Screw a shower. He’s still somewhat awake, even if he can feel sleep finally starting to tug at his mind. He checks his schedule again and sees a 6AM start with Gladio, then flicks further down the day to see a council meeting and a lesson in law and politics. He groans and flops back onto his pillows. He’ll just get through that and… well, and what? Keep going until he meets up with Prompto again, maybe, then have a dinner with dad. Maybe hang with Gladio…

Another groan. Then he blinks when his phone vibrates. He opens up his texts and sees Prompto’s winking face at him.

                **Prom [23:21]:** hey noct! ~(˘▾˘~) Figured u might want it anyway LOL

The next text is a link.

Noct stares a moment, thumb hovering over the text before he presses on it. _The Other Side_ , the app is called. Stupid name. He considers throwing his phone aside and finally getting some sleep but he hesitates. Why not, actually?

The download takes a few seconds. The registration takes a minute or so. He stares at the loading screen, wondering why exactly he’s doing this in the first place, before the app loads and he sees the home screen. Two block buttons greet him: _Find a Friend_ or _Join a Group_. Just like Prompto said, he figures, and just presses the first option.

 _Enter an interest_.

Noct stares at the text box for a moment. He types _fishing_  but he doesn’t think he has the brain for that at the moment. He types in _food_ then has to backtrack, figuring he could at least save that conversation for when he’s more enthusiastic about this… _if_ he’s more enthusiastic about this. He thinks for a moment before just inputting _6am start_ , then snorts to himself. What’re the chances of getting a match from just that?

The app loads. Noct rolls onto his back, then rolls onto his side. _Finding a friend…_ shines at him in the darkness, and he sighs, shifting his thumb to just turn off his phone. Maybe he’ll uninstall it in the morning or something if he remembers or cares enough to. He doubts he’ll get the time to really check his phone anyway.

_Friend found!_

Noct stares. He slowly shifts his thumb from the home button as he shifts on his side, watching as the app screen morphs to a chatbox. His ‘friend’ is named ‘Scientia’, apparently, with the picture icon the default app one. Noct hadn’t bothered with one either, and figures either this person just didn’t feel like it or just joined like Noct had.

Noct hesitates, though. How is he supposed to start a conversation? He regrets it, suddenly, and wonders if he can just exit out and leave, but that feels kinda rude. He wonders if the person on the other side—godsdamn it—typed _6am start_ as a joke like he did.  

Words appear under his text box. _Scientia is typing…_ Well, at least he doesn’t have to make the first move. He feels awkward enough as it is.

                **Scientia:** Hello there. I honestly did not expect to find a friend using that interest criteria…

Noct snorts. He doubted it himself, after all. His fingers hover over the digital keyboard before he taps out a reply.

                **† prince †:** yeah same

Noct pauses. Shit, that was a lame response. How’s the other dude supposed to carry on the conversation like that? He hesitates, and sweats just trying to think up something. He doesn’t even see _Scientia is typing…_ , so the dude’s probably waiting for him to say more, but Noct really doesn’t have anything to say. Shit.

Then _Scientia is typing…_ appears and Noct breathes out a sigh of relief he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.

                **Scientia:** We should be sleeping, shouldn’t we?

Noct hesitates, before just typing out:

                **† prince †:** yeah

No way to carry on the conversation. Again. Noct sighs to himself and tries thinking up something else before Scientia can think up something himself. Scientia does it anyway.

                **Scientia:** Can’t sleep?

He types fast. Noct wonders if that just matches his brain or something because Noct feels as sluggish as ever right now.

 **† prince †:** I can but I guess I wanted 2 try out this app first

There’s another pause. Noct quickly types out something else.

                **† prince †:** cant u  
                **† prince †:** ?

Scientia’ response is fast again.

                **Scientia:** No

Well that dries up Noct’s thoughts. How does he respond to that? Well, at least he knows what Scientia feels like now…

Seeing _Scientia is typing_ … makes Noct breathe out another sigh. Man, maybe he shouldn’t’ve tried this out. He’s just getting anxious trying to carry on a conversation with a stranger.

                **Scientia:** What made u want to try this app out?

Going back to something else. Noct wonders why he can’t sleep, but curls up a little in his bed, squinting at the screen a little now as he tries to fight off some of his drowsiness. First time ever, maybe.

                **† prince †:** friend got me in2 it. said no but he sent me a link anywy

Noct shifts onto his other side. His back’s aching and he groans softly. Shit. He should’ve tried to sleep while he could. It sucks—he thought he’d be ache-free for a few days longer yet.

                **Scientia:** Haha, & u tried it out despite saying no?

Noct snorts softly and blinks a few times, trying to stay awake at least a little longer.

                **† prince †:** yeah. Dumb rite?

                **Scientia:** I suppose we’ll see in the morning

                **† prince †:** yeah  
                **† prince †:** what got u in2 the app?

                **Scientia:** I suppose I needed a distraction

                **† prince †:** from what

                **Scientia:** life in general

Noct can understand that, at least. Maybe this could be a distraction too considering how busy his day is and… well, other things.

                **† prince †:** that bad huh

                **Scientia:** it could be worse

                **† prince †:** ur rlly optimistic

                **Scientia:** I suppose u could say I like to see The Other Side of things…

Noct gives a disbelieving laugh. Maybe he likes puns.

                **† prince †:** pls no

                **Scientia:** That was funny wasn’t it?

                **† prince †:** no

A pause, then Noct relents.

                **† prince †:** maybe

                **Scientia:**  :)

Noct shakes his head, snorting.

                **† prince †:** dork

                **Scientia:** Humour is apparently my worst skill

                **† prince †:** but ur so good at it!!

                **Scientia:** was that sarcasm?

                **† prince †:** of course not

                **Scientia:** that sounds like more sarcasm

                **† prince †:** im being v genuine

                **Scientia:** should I trust that?

                **† prince †:** yes u should

                **Scientia:** hmmm

Noct pauses then, not entirely sure how to carry on with the banter. It always feels a little easier to talk through texting rather than talking. Even Prompto’s commented on it once or twice after a few long conversations through King’s Knight.

                **Scientia:** u should try to sleep

He blinks and he takes a moment to realize he’d properly zoned out. He shifts back to his original side. The ache in his back is fading, thankfully, but the warmth of his duvet is getting to him.

                **† prince †:** didn’t even change out of my uniform

He barely types it, sleepy as he is, and closes his eyes for a moment. When he opens them again, there’s three messages from Scientia.

 **Scientia:** u must be very tired  
                 **Scientia:** if u can sleep, u should  
                 **Scientia:** rest well, prince.

Noct feels his face draw slowly into a frown. He should at least write back a thanks, or a _goodnight_ or something…

He manages to press the second ‘o’ before his eyes close permanently for the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im gonna keep a sufficient amount of this written so i don't lag behind, plus im going overseas in dec for christmas/new year so imma try to write as much as possible before i go lkmasf i wanna try to finish this asap, before feb next year, so hopefully i reach that goal! 
> 
> stick around if u want more! 8') leave a kudos if u enjoyed and I appreciate feedback!


	2. Chapter 2

Noct wakes slowly, the blaring of the alarm doing little to jolt him into alertness, and sighs seeing the numbers **05:25** blink at him in response.

He really doesn’t wanna get out of bed. It’s warm. It’s cosy. He contemplates just texting Gladio, but he figures that’ll result in him coming over and dragging Noct outta bed, which is something Noct would rather avoid. At least he’s awake a little earlier than usual. Maybe he can take a few minutes to nap more…

He eyes his notifications for a moment. Blown up, as usual, and he scrolls through them briefly. More schedule reminders, a text from his dad, _The Other Side_ … Noct frowns. Wait. He’d fallen asleep on… on Scientia, right? He quickly texts his dad, saying he’ll meet him for dinner, before dismissing everything else and opening the app.

A red circle blinks at the top right-hand corner. He quickly opens it and sees a new message and—a friend request.

                **Scientia has sent you a friend request. Accept?**

Noct blinks. That was fast. He hesitates before just opening the chat.

                **Scientia:** I hope ill get up in time…

There’s no time stamp. Noct experimentally presses on the message and sees **03:49** beside it. Perking up a little, he presses the last few messages and checks the time stamps there. Looks like Scientia messaged ‘rest well’ half an hour after Noct fell asleep… Jeez. He feels bad for falling asleep on him.

                **† prince †:** I hope ur up

There’s no immediate response just like last night. Noct types more.

                **† prince †:** I don’t wanna get outta bed  
                **† prince †:** friendll kick my ass if I don’t tho

After a few more minutes, _Scientia is typing…_ appears, and Noct sits up a little as soon as he sees it.

                **Scientia:** even if u call in sick?

Noct snorts and thinks of Gladio again.

                **† prince †:** esp when I call in sick lol  
                **† prince †:** y don’t u call sick? u didn’t get any sleep rite

There’s a few minutes pause. Noct figures Scientia’s getting ready, which reminds him… Noct glances at the time. **05:34** already…

He finally gets out of bed with a groan and stretches languidly. The bed calls him from behind but he determinedly just chucks on a pair of new clothes, nevermind having that shower. Gladio’ll probably make him sweat within a few minutes anyway. He gets out and checks his phone. A new _TOS_ message and the time is **05:46**. Shit. Well, it’s not as if Gladio’s ever seen him come on time to a training session before. He opens the messenger.

                **Ignis:** no I did not. I can’t call in sick, though. Work is very strict

Huh. That sucks. Technically Gladio’s not work but it’s still mandatory to take part in the training sessions with him. He wonders what kinda job Scientia has to not even allow sick calls.

                **† prince †:** that sux

Noct pauses, then types again.

                **† prince †:** I gotta go tho

 _Scientia is typing…_ pops up almost immediately.

                **Scientia:** That’s early. Do u have to go somewhere far away?

Noct frowns in confusion.

                **† prince †:** nah its almost 6

                **Scientia:** oh, I see. It’s almost 5am here

Well, that explains it. An hour difference in their time zones. Noct puts on his shoes quickly before typing out a reply.

                **† prince †:** gtg. Try 2 get sum sleep1!

He locks his screen and nearly sprints to training.

\--

Gladio kicks his ass once again.

“Getting better,” he says, eyeing Noct in amusement when he stays lying on the ground, panting hard. “Hell, you almost beat me that time.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Noct mutters, and doesn’t bother getting up just yet. He feels sore as ever and it’s only, what, seven in the morning now? Shit. Only twelve more hours to go until he sees his dad for dinner. “Gimme a minute.”

“Sure,” Gladio agrees, and Noct looks up to see him on his phone. Noct groans and wonders if grabbing his own would make Gladio wanna start up the lesson again. Come to think of it, Gladio’s been on his phone a lot lately, almost as much as Noct and Prom when they play King’s Knight together. Maybe they should invite him to a few games…

“Hey, if you get to have a phone break, then I should too,” Noct says, sitting up slowly and wincing at the bruises most likely forming all over his body. “Chuck it over.”

“What? Prompto’s up?” Gladio snorts but throws it over to him. “Doesn’t that game of yours take a while to finish a round? Better not start one now.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Noct mutters, opting to ignore him for now. Dad’s sent him a thumbs up emoji and Noct snorts softly to himself seeing it. He sends an OK hand emoji back before checking what’s next on the line-up for today. At nine o’clock there’s the council meeting he’s gotta attend. If his session with Gladio ends on time then he’ll have an hour to catch a small nap and some breakfast which is something to look forward to. He sends Prompto a quick text, too, saying he’s downloaded the app. That’ll please Prompto, probably, and finally opens _TOS_ , immediately going to the chat with Scientia.

                **Scientia:** Ill try  
                **Scientia:** I tried

Noct taps the messages, smiling briefly when he calculates the difference between the timestamps. Nineteen minutes. Well, all right, he’ll believe him.

                **† prince †:** ur prolly busy rn doing ur thing but hope ur surviving lol

He pauses, looking over the message, before sending it. He wonders if Scientia’s in for a gruelling day as much as Noct is.

“All right, break time’s up,” Gladio says, setting his phone to the side and holds out a hand. Noct takes it and Gladio hauls him up. “Let’s go, princess.”

Noct snorts and chucks his phone aside before taking the training sword Gladio offers him. He settles into a stance. “You’re on.”

\--

Noct doesn’t manage so well the second round.

“You’re more distracted than usual,” Gladio observes, raising a brow at him as he puts away his training sword. “And that’s saying something.”

Noct just stands and carefully stretches out his muscles, eventually doing the same. “Yeah, yeah. Just—thinking, I guess.”

Gladio grins like he knows something. “About whoever’s messaging you, huh?” When Noct gives him an incredulous look, Gladio jerks his head over at his phone where a familiar notification light blinks. “That’s _The Other Side_ , right? The app?”

Noct stares at him incredulously. “What, you’re on it too?”

“Yeah, just joined ‘cause Iris wanted to show me. Thought it was kinda dumb, honestly.” Gladio shrugs. “Met a few weird people. Took a while before someone interesting came along.”

Noct eyes him. “Lemme guess: you put Cup Noodles as the interest.”

Gladio scowls at him. “Shuddup. I put ‘exercising’.”

Noct laughs. “Yeah, all right, I see how the ‘weird people’ came about, then.”

“Well, luckily not the most recent one.” Gladio chucks him his phone again. “Add me as a friend?”

“We already text each other...”

“Hey, you get a trophy for getting a few friends, all right?”

Noct rolls his eyes and opens the app for him on his own phone. Scientia hasn’t replied yet, he notes briefly, before passing it over.

Gladio taps a few things in and huffs. “Who’s Scientia?”

“Dunno.” Noct tries to act nonchalant. Technically, he doesn’t. “Just some stranger.”

“Obviously. You not gonna accept his friend request?”

“Not everyone’s after trophies, Gladio.”

“Not saying it just ‘cause of that. If you’re talking well enough, there’s nothing wrong with friending him.” Noct gives him a sceptical look. Gladio raises his hands, shrugging. “Hey, the networks already been checked out with the Crownsguard and everything. It’s an Altissian source with high-tech malware. Big spenders backing it and all.”

Noct takes his phone back from Gladio and stares at the friend request. He doesn’t even know why he hasn’t accepted it yet. He presses the button, and a fireworks animation happens along with some sorta trophy about ‘First Friend’. Noct snorts.

“There, done,” Noct drawls before giving a quiet yawn. Yeah, he’s definitely gonna take that nap.

Gladio taps something on his phone. “And we’re friends now, too.”

“ _Yay._ ”

“Shuddup.

\--

He lazes around for at least half an hour, tending to his sore muscles before finally dragging himself up to get something to eat. He forces down jerky and a bottle of water before heading back to the Citadel for the council meeting. It’s… what, two hours? He brings up the agenda and quickly scans over it. No wonders it’s so short—luckily there’re only a few items to vote on, and the public hearings shouldn’t take too long if no one brings up a serious issue…

He zones out as he walks, swiping through his emails and through the various tabs he has open before finally coming back to _TOS_. No new notifications. Scientia hasn’t messaged back yet either but he checks Gladio’s nickname and it’s… Henruit. What.

He messages him.

                **† prince †:** ys ur name like that

It only takes a few moments.

                **Henruit:** it’s the name of the author of my fav book  
                **Henruit:** “Silence of Knowledge”  
                **Henruit:** why is ur name like that

Noct snorts and glances up briefly to determine where he’s going. He double-checks the agenda to see which room they’re in and changes direction before quickly typing back a reply.

                **† prince †:** bc y not

Gladio types back almost immediately.

                **Henruit:** that’s a little obvious, dyt???

Another buzz alerts Noct to a reply from Scientia. The red light blinks at the top right-hand corner. He types a reply to Gladio first.

                **† prince †:** SYM, its accurate!!  
                **† prince †:** only a moron would use their real name

A press of his thumb brings him over to Scientia’s chat. Come to think of it, where’s Scientia even from? It means knowledge, he’s sure, in the language of Old Lucian…

                **Scientia:** I’m surviving well enough haha  
                **Scientia:** How about urself?

                **† prince †:** im good im good  
                **† prince †:** had a bit of a break luckily  
                **† prince †:** u on 1 now?

He switches to Gladio when he sees the red notification.

                **Henruit:** idk… that’s pretty much in ur name

                **† prince †:** im sure other ppl would wanna be called prince dude

                **Henruit:** Because ur the most exemplary example of a prince we have, of course.

                **† prince †:**  of course!!!

Noct takes a moment to look at his notifications just in case he missed anything from Scientia. Nothing. He looks at the time. **08:49**. He’s arrived at the chambers where trickles of council members are moving in. Time for the meeting, he guesses. At least they capped the time at midday…

He checks Scientia’s chat. Still nothing. He closes his phone and catches his father’s eye with a small smile as he heads in.

\--

Scientia’s reply comes halfway through the first debate that’s been going for almost half an hour. He keeps his phone balanced on his thigh, a hand framing the side of his face as he leans his elbow on the table. He glances down, superstitiously swiping the lock screen of his phone and going straight to the chat.

                **Scientia:** haven’t had one just yet but I’m glad u could rest

Noct feels a smile pulling a little at his lips and immediately types back a reply.

                **† prince †:** thnx  
                **† prince †:** y can’t u get a break yet?

Noct hesitates after sending that last question before adding:

                **† prince †:** if u don’t mind me asking

Scientia doesn’t respond immediately and Noct feels a little stupid for responding so fast. Scientia’s busy, probably, and Noct can’t really expect him to respond as fast as he can considering they only just talked yesterday. Or maybe Scientia’s seen the message and isn‘t bothered responding yet…

Noct can’t help it. He swipes up, checking the bottom again for _Scientia is typing…_ but there’s nothing. _Seen at_ isn’t there either, which means Scientia hasn’t even looked at his phone yet so… so, yeah. Scientia’s just busy, which is fair enough.

Noct’s supposed to be busy too, technically. He glances up as the debate gets a little louder and it takes his dad giving the councilman a mere glance for him to lower his voice and continue talking. Noct tries to concentrate briefly but it feels as if the words just go in one ear and out the other. Jeez. He glances down at his phone again and still doesn’t see a reply before shutting the screen off. He should probably concentrate—the last thing he wants to do is slack off completely.

He doesn’t feel his phone vibrate for a while after that.

\--

The meeting drags an hour later than intended and by midday his stomach is quietly growling. The notes in front of him are blurring and he’s sure he hasn’t been recording the going-ons accurately enough. At least it’s for training instead of something official—the meeting minutes are being written by someone who’s actually trained and Noct really doubts anyone could read his handwriting when he’s trying to be fast.

His phone vibrates just as the meeting draws to a close. Everyone stands and Noct immediately packs away his things, glancing at his phone. Scientia’s replied. He quickly opens the chat.

                **Scientia:** I don’t mind you asking  
                **Scientia:** I merely have a workload that wont be finished quickly that’s all  
                **Scientia:** my employers are strict

Noct frowns at that. Again with that workplace. He wonders what exactly is it that Scientia does.

                **† prince †:** that rly sux, I know what u mean  
                **† prince †:** they let u go on ur phone tho?  
                **† prince †:** or r u sneaking looks lol

Scientia responds almost immediately; maybe there’s a bit of leeway on his side of things to allow him to. Noct half expected him to take a few more hours like before.

                **Scientia:** Sneaking mostly  
                **Scientia:** Luckily my managers aren’t very observant

Noct glances at the messages before he has to put away his phone and exit the meeting room. He looks at his dad briefly to see him talking with another council member. Regis gives him a brief wave and Noct quickly waves back with a small smile before leaving.

It’s annoying texting while walking but there’s a private lesson he has to go to that’s back-to-back with the meeting, unfortunately. Maybe he could grab a bite on the way…

Quickly, he sidesteps into the Citadel kitchens and asks for a sandwich. The chefs are nice enough to provide but it takes a while, and Noct uses the opportunity to text Scientia back, hoping he’s free again.

                **† prince †:** That’s good lol

He pauses. What does he say next? _Scientia is typing…_ doesn’t appear at the bottom just yet, so Noct has time to think up something to carry on the conversation. He hesitates, then asks:

                **† prince †:** When do u finish work?

He’s curious, too, so that’s a win-win. He exits out of Scientia’s chat and stares at Henruit for a moment before going into their chat and typing up something else.

                **† prince †:** So who’s the interesting person that came along that u mentioned b4??

He doesn’t get an immediate response for that either but he figures Gladio must be knee-deep on someone’s ass right now anyway so he puts away his phone for the time being. At least there’ll be something to look forward to later.

Someone calls his name, and he looks up to see the sandwich and a pleased chef presenting it. Noct thanks him and quickly carries onto his private lesson.

\--

The lesson drags the moment Noct feels his phone vibrate again his leg. He’s tempted to sneak a peek but his tutor’s checking on him every second to make certain he’s understanding the content so he throws himself immediately into learning that instead.

An hour and a half of that leads to the end of the lesson; his teacher congratulates him with a wan smile and Noct gives a mumbled reply, slightly too distracted by _TOS_ to want to do anything else. He quickly leaves for his apartment, checking his phone on the way.

                **Scientia:** in a few hours, thankfully  
                **Scientia:** are u done for the day urself?

                **† prince †:** almost.

Noct hesitates, then adds:

                **† prince †:** just dinner with my dad then I can do whatever I want

He flips over to Gladio’s chat.

                **Henruit:** A lady called LOKTON. Shes fascinating to talk to TBH

Noct snorts. Of course it’s a chick. Why does LOKTON sound so familiar, though?

                **† prince †:** u sure it’s a chick?

Gladio responds almost immediately.

                **Henruit:** Very certain

                **† prince †:** wdym

                **Henruit:** She said once her hair blocked the shower drain

                **† prince †:** r u srsly going off just that??

                **Henruit:** A guy’s hair doesn’t block the drain!

                **† prince †:** urs might

                **Henruit:** That’s bc mine’s long

                **† prince †:** His might be long

                **Henruit:** Don’t be absurd

Noct rolls his eyes and decides to just let Gladio have it. He sees a notification appear and pops back over to Scientia’s chat.

                **Scientia:** That sounds nice  
                **Scientia:** Are u going to be cooking?

Noct hesitates again. He can’t say the castle servants will cook for them…

                **† prince †:** yeah  
                **† prince †:** take-away

                **Scientia:** I don’t believe that counts haha

                **† prince †:** totally does

                **Scientia:** Doubtful

                **† prince †:** really tho

                **Scientia:** ur dad approves?

Noct snorts.

                **† prince †:** sometimes  
                **† prince †:** when he doesn’t catch me

                **Scientia:** so ur daring to bring him takeaways for dinner

                **† prince †:** yup :)

                **Scientia:** Hell be overjoyed, im sure

                **† prince †:** guaranteed

He arrives at his apartment and quickly takes off his tie and clothes to go for a shower, occasionally glancing at his phone. Scientia hasn’t responded yet, which is fine. He doesn’t figure his last response merits much of a reply, anyway.

He dresses into much more comfortable cloths and by the time he’s ready, it’s almost five in the afternoon. Noct pauses by the door, debating inwardly about whether he should go for a quick nap or not. Technically, dinner with dad won’t be until seven so he could just snatch these couple of hours to…

His phone vibrates. Well, all right, decision made.

He flops onto the sofa, already bringing up the app. Scientia’s replied.

                **Scientia:** So neither u nor ur father cook then?

Noct thinks for a moment, then thinks briefly of the barely there memories of his mom, before shifting to lie across the sofa, phone cradled between his hands as he thinks of an answer. _Scientia is typing…_ appears before he can press a thumb to the screen.

                **Scientia:** If u don’t mind me asking of course

Noct smiles briefly but replies.

                **† prince †:** its cool  
                **† prince †:** dad doesn’t have time 2 cook and im not that great at it

                **Scientia:** Never had any interest?

                **† prince †:** nah  
                **† prince †:** I mean, a few ppl tried 2 get me in2 it  
                **† prince †:** didnt wanna tho

He almost said ‘retainer’ instead. That probably would’ve given him away. Just in case, he adds:

                **† prince †:** I just want 2 fish

                **Scientia:** Well cooking isn’t for everyone   
                **Scientia:** Fishing if ur hobby then?  
                **Scientia:** Have u done it lately?

Well, now that Noct thinks about it, he hasn’t. He could make a trip to the outskirts of the city near the wall but… well, he’d want a whole day to fish, not just snatch an hour or two here and there throughout the day.

                **† prince †:** not rly…

                **Scientia:** U should  
                **Scientia:** Uve been busy, haven’t u?  
                **Scientia:** It’s always good to relax and wind down

                **† prince †:** idk if my schedule will allow 4 it tho  
                **† prince †:** I still got things 2 do

Just thinking about it makes him _really_ want to do it. When _was_ the last time he went fishing? Between the school terms? A few months ago? Maybe he should…

                **Scientia:** Surely u can afford a day to do so?  
                **Scientia:** Are you able to rearrange ur schedule?

Well, he can, technically. Maybe he’ll ask dad and possibly his current retainer as well so he can go. He could do double the workload in a day since he technically has at least a few hours of breaks in between his workloads and make up for his day off then…

                **† prince †:** yeah maybe  
                **† prince †:** ill try

                **Scientia:** That’s good to hear 😊

Noct smiles at the screen before he realizes what he’s doing and tries adopting a neutral look once more. It’s good, though. He hadn’t considered getting back into fishing. He should have, what with how things have been lately. The thought somehow hadn’t crossed his mind.

                **† prince †:** wbu?  
                **† prince †:** what do u like 2 do?

                **Scientia:** Cooking, funnily enough  
                **Scientia:** Luckily I get to indulge in it every morning and night

                **† prince †:** woah  
                **† prince †:** r u good at it???

                **Scientia:** I would like to think so

                **† prince †:** don’t b modest if u r

                **Scientia:** I am moderately good at it then

                **† prince †:** u got ny pics?

That was a little forward. Noct flushes slightly, wondering how audacious that was, and the words _Scientia is typing…_ doesn’t even appear at all for a few moments. He types up a quick follow-up to take back the words, but a picture appears instead. Are those… tarts? More pictures come in, and there’s pasta and curry and rice bowls… Noct’s mouth waters just looking at them, especially since Scientia’s phone seems to have taken the pictures in high definition.

                **Scientia:** I have a few more but I think that may b enough for now haha

                **† prince †:** wow!!   
                **† prince †:** nd u said ‘moderately good’

                **Scientia:** I am moderately good!

                **† prince †:** those look ‘incredibly good’ u kno

                **Scientia:** u haven’t even tasted it…  
                **Scientia:** nice try!

                **† prince †:** I can tell!  
                **† prince †:** I kno good food when I see it

                **Scientia:** u said u don’t cook

                **† prince †:** but I do eat a lot of food!

                **Scientia:** I don’t know if that counts…

                **† prince †:** It rly does!

                **Scientia:** So what would be ur fav food then?

Noct thinks for a moment before typing it out.

                **† prince †:** Any sweets TBH and meat and fries r gr8  
                **† prince †:** Fast foods are awesome  
                **† prince †:** Garulessa meat in sandwiches too

                **Scientia:** Some fast foods are incredible  
                **Scientia:** Ive this burger place I visit often

                **† prince †:** Same! Me and a friend go there oftn  
                **† prince †:** The meatier the better lol

                **Scientia:** That so? I can believe u two meat there a lot

Noct almost face palms.

                **† prince †:** That was so lame

                **Scientia:** Unfortunately it was  
                **Scientia:** I will stand by it with pride regardless  
                **Scientia:** Is there anything u don’t like to eat?

                **† prince †:** Vegetables

Noct almost surprises himself with how fast he typed that.

                **† prince †:** Can’t stand em

                **Scientia:** But they’re a source of great nutrition!

Oh, no.

                **† prince †:** NTY

                **Scientia:** Have u never heard of filling half ur plate with veges, 1/4 carbs, 1/4 meat??

                **† prince †:** NTY!!!  
                **† prince †:** I like the sound of 1/2 meat, 1/2 carbs

                **Scientia:** Ur nutrition!!!

                **† prince †:** I hunger 4 meat nd fries

                **Scientia:** But veges!

                **† prince †:** Wat dat

                **Scientia:** Why are you like this

Noct gives a loud laugh.

                **† prince †:** New phone hu dis

                **Scientia:** ☹

                **† prince †:** Don’t b sad  
                **† prince †:** B vege happy

                **Scientia:** And u say my puns r terrible

                **† prince †:** That’s bc they r!!!

                **Scientia:** ☹

                **† prince †:** im not taking it back

                **Scientia:** ☹☹

                **† prince †:** Fine I take it back

                **Scientia:** 😊

                **† prince †:** 😐

                **Scientia:** Such generosity is befitting of royalty

For a moment, Noct wonders if he’s slipped up somewhere and he inwardly panics, wondering how to dissuade the other from that idea. Then, well, _duh_. His penname’s prince.

                **† prince †:** Ikr  
                **† prince †:** U should treat me as such

                **Scientia:** Should I really?

Noct glances at the time. Jeez, time flew. It’s almost quarter to seven, which means he’s gotta get ready for dinner with his dad.

                **† prince †:** Think on it OK  
                **† prince †:** Gtg

                **Scientia:** Ur very busy  
                **Scientia:** Which is why u should eat ur veggies!!

                **† prince †:** OK mom

 **Scientia:** 😐

Noct laughs.

                **† prince †:** OK now I really gtg  
                **† prince †:** TTYL

                **Scientia:** Take care!

Noct quickly exits out of the app and gets changed. Hopefully he won’t be too late…

The ride’s already there. Noct gets in and the trip passes in a blur, his mind replaying the conversation with Scientia. The people he texts are people he knows in person. There are a few others on and off he’s met during King’s Knight, but none he hasn’t really clicked with other than when discussing the game, and even he can’t discuss King’s Knight as much as Prompto can with his repertoire of knowledge on it.

Noct wonders briefly how long this friendship with Scientia will last. They’ll run out of topics, he’s sure. Or they’ll go silent with one another, longer and longer gaps each time they talk before it becomes forever, and there goes another potential friend. Depressing to think about, but it’s how most internet friendships end up, which is fine with Noct. Things come and go, after all. He figures he’ll just enjoy the casual camaraderie while it lasts.

They arrive at the Citadel and Noct gets out when his door’s opened for him, muttering a ‘thanks’ to his chauffeur. He wonders how his dad’s doing. He hasn’t seen him in at least two weeks.

“Good evening, Noctis,” Dad says, smiling warmly at him as soon as he comes into the dining hall. “Take a seat. Food should be here shortly.”

“Yeah, thanks,” Noct replies, giving a small smile. It’s a narrow dinner table and Noct seats himself on the long side. Dad sits opposite him, and Noct tries not to note the way Dad has eases himself into the chair. He doesn’t set aside his cane until after he’s seated. “What’s for dinner?” Noct asks, wanting to distract himself.

“Rice and steak,” Dad says with a small smile. A tired smile. Noct looks away and gets out his phone. There’s no notification light. He doesn’t unlock the screen. “Perhaps some dessert afterwards, if you wish.”

“Yeah, that’d be nice,” Noct mumbles, thinking of the tarts that a Tenebraean chef—one his Dad hired years ago—makes frequently for him. He’s usually kinda eager for it. Not right now, though.

Dad asks him about his day and Noct doesn’t really know what to say. He doesn’t feel like talking about _TOS_ just yet, not when the image of Dad’s weariness rests heavily on his mind, and when the food comes he gratefully occupies himself with it, occasionally glancing at his phone.

“Are you on _The Other Side_?” Dad asks suddenly, his tone amused, and Noct almost snorts rice through his nose.

Noct swallows hard because rice coming out of his nose is _really_  gross and he doesn’t wanna do that at the table. He grabs a drink of water instead, gulps down half, and Dad’s laughing at him when he puts down the glass.

“You know about it, too?” Noct asks incredulously. Almost everyone he’s close to has told him or asked him about it. Gods, maybe he hadn’t chosen a subtle name after all.

“Indeed.” Dad’s got this shit-eating grin on his face like he wants to tease Noct about it. “I’m told about all the different applications used by phones and whether I should approve of its usage in Insomnia or not. _The Other Side_ is getting more popularity than _Haha L.O.L._ , surprisingly.” Dad sounds a little miffed at that. Noct groans and drags a hand down the side of his face.

“Dad, no.”

“Dad, yes,” Dad says, amused once more.

“Did you really just…?” Noct asks, incredulously once more. Gods. Dad should never have free time. Ever.

“Perhaps.” Dad takes another bite of steak, and peers at him as he chews. “So, about adding me as a friend on _T.O.S…_ ”

“No.” Noct shakes his head immediately. “No way. We _text_ already. You don’t think that’s enough?”

Dad laughs. “All right, all right. I won’t push it. I merely had to see how pale you got at the mention.”

“ _Dad_ ,” Noct groans, but a smile tugs at his lips anyway.

Noct steers the conversation away from _The Other Side_ after that, instead chatting about the council members, the long meeting earlier that day, what they’ll be doing tomorrow. It’s peaceful, and Noct’s only reminded of Dad’s cane when Dad stands to see Noct out.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Dad says, smiling gently.

Noct nods, too distracted by the way Dad leans on his cane to manage a proper smile. “Yeah, see ya.”

Noct gets into the car and Dad closes the door for him. They both wave at each other, and Noct’s driver starts the engine.

He opens his phone. Scientia’s left a message and he quickly opens it.

                **Scientia:** I hope ur having a good night

Just underneath, a picture of a mouth-watering dessert awaits. A tart, Noct thinks, because it’s similar to a fond memory he holds of Tenebrae.

                **Scientia:** I certainly am. 😊

Noct groans quietly.

                **† prince †:** tease WTF

 _Scientia is typing…_ appears straight away.

                **Scientia:**  I thought mayb u’d want to see

                **† prince †:** I do and now I want it  
                **† prince †:** I /just/ had dessert, u no

                **Scientia:** Ill take that as a compliment

Noct snorts. He looks up when the car slows down and doesn’t wait for the driver to open his door. He gets out, waving at the guy, and his driver nods before going.

                **† prince †:** only compliment ull get from me

                **Scientia:** ☹

 **† prince †:** thirsty

                **Scientia:** what haha

                **† prince †:** u kno what I mean

Noct takes the elevator up to his apartment. It’s when he gets into his room he notices he has a little smile across his lips. He immediately tries to school his expression despite no one being there.

He kicks off his shoes, throws his bag to the side, and collapses in bed. Drowsiness already rears its head to take him, and he can’t help a yawn.

                **Scientia:** I don’t actually

Noct blinks when he sees that message. Maybe it was a slang term that only limited itself to Insomnia?

                **† prince †:** seriously? where do u even live LOL

                **Scientia:** Haha  
                **Scientia:** im not very ‘hip’ and ‘with the times’ as many others of my age

                **† prince †:** why’s that?

Noct brings his phone closer to his face in interest. It’s weird, knowing that someone else isn’t familiar with what Noct called normal. Then again, that‘s expected given the online environment he’s taking part in.

… Or maybe Scientia is some old guy and Noct should ask his age or something. Gods, Noct doesn’t know what he’d do then. Not that he has anything against old guys or anything, just that, well, Scientia doesn’t _seem_ like an old guy…

                **Scientia:** I suppose u could say I was sheltered   
                **Scientia:** I grew up with home tutors and the like  
                **Scientia:** I never learned the true joys of the internet and memes until the start of this year

Noct rereads his answer a few times, a little baffled. His parents must have been super strict. Noct counts himself lucky that his own dad’s trying to be as lax as possible towards Noct without completely absolving Noct of all his duties.

He debates for a moment on what to say. He doesn’t even know what would be _appropriate_. He hesitates, then:

                **† prince †:** You use puns tho

For a moment, he stares at his own answer. Should he have taken that seriously? Shit, Scientia was opening up to him, after all…

Before he can hastily amend his answer, Scientia replies.

                **Scientia:** LOL

Noct lets out a sigh of relief.

                **Scientia:** that I do  
                **Scientia:** u could say that was my only memedom

Noct lets out a laugh despite himself.

                **† prince †:** wut does that even mean???

                **Scientia:** Who knows  
                **Scientia:** ive decided to make my own rules

Noct can feel his eyes drooping. He sets the brightness to low. At least this way it can lull him to sleep before any back aches can start up.

                **† prince †:** weird  
                **† prince †:** ur gonna be the only one following them u know LOL

                **Scientia:** worth it if I can make someone laugh

Noct smiles at that. It’s a nice sentiment.

                **† prince †:** mayb im fake laughing

                **Scientia:** travesty  
                **Scientia:** that’s heartbreaking to hear  
                **Scientia:** my puns aren’t good enough?

                **† prince †:** sometimes

                **Scientia:**  ☹

                **† prince †:** most of the times then omg

                **Scientia:** 😊

                **† prince †:** ur so easily pleased

                **Scientia:** bc I aim to please  
                **Scientia:** 😊

Noct huffs out a soft breath of mirth and closes his eyes briefly, fingers stilling on the keypad for a moment. He’ll just take a moment. His eyes are getting a little blurry, so hopefully Scientia won’t mind if he pauses.

The phone buzzes in his hands suddenly. He jerks awake briefly and realizes the screen’s off. Had he dozed off?

He fumbles, opening the chat with Scientia, and blinks rapidly when the light blinds him for a moment despite the low brightness. The disorientation clears after a second, and he smiles at the messages.

                **Scientia:** sleep is perhaps a good idea  
                **Scientia:** sleep well, Prince

Noct thumbs out a reply before slipping straight to sleep.

                **† prince †:** u 2 scientia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so... i may have veered off schedule for this fic lkjasf   
> anyway, please leave a kudos and/or comment! i'm a thirsty gal  
> thanks for reading!!


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